


Station 51 and the Case of the Missing Ward LaFrance

by Mandoli



Category: Emergency!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-20
Updated: 2016-06-22
Packaged: 2018-04-05 08:57:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,370
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4173774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mandoli/pseuds/Mandoli
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In the dead of night, when everyone's sleeping, nobody notices the sound of a familiar motor vehicle pulling out of the bay. What will happen when the station goes on the ultimate hunt for their precious engine?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This... Is a crazy idea. I write down whatever's on my mind before I go to bed, and I had something similar to this swirling in my head. When I typed it out, though, it didn't come out the way I thought it was going to. Either way, this is a strange concept.

Things couldn't have been quieter around Station 51 than the night that was happening to the A-shift members. It wasn't that busy of a night, unless you counted the motor vehicle accident that they were toned out to right after the leftovers were put into the fridge. There weren't severe injuries in the accident, which was rare for something that looked more dangerous than it appeared to be. People with cuts and scrapes didn't need to be sent to Rampart, but the drunk driver had been put into handcuffs and was going to take a ride to the police station.

To say that everyone in the station was slightly agitated was a complete understatement. Sure, sending both the engine and the squad to the scene was a precaution, but Cap didn't feel as though that much attention was needed. He mumbled something under his breath; it might have been somewhere between a regular word and a curse word, but nobody could make it out – even Cap, which wasn't beyond the norm nine times out of ten. “Someone could have run over to see how badly they were hurt,” he said, shaking his head while on the way to his office. “I know LA wanted to make it sound like a worst-case scenario, but maybe next time...”

The rest of the engine crew walked into the day room, not as frustrated as Cap was. But their faces told the story. Nobody wanted to talk about this run for the longest time, and for good reason. It was as if it was going to lead to a night of disaster.

When Johnny and Roy returned to the station a few minutes later, after treating the cuts and scrapes from the accident, everyone planted themselves around the television to watch a movie. Chet made the popcorn, and distributed it into six bowls. It was a rare feat for the crew to have their own bowls of popcorn when it was time for a film, which was great for those who never got any by the time the bowl was handed to them. It usually sucked to be at the end of the line, it seemed.

The movie was some horror-like, black and white film from the 30s. The plot was something like those classic horror movies, but it was really an obscure film that nobody really knew. By the hour mark, there wasn't enough popcorn to get the crew through the rest of the movie, and some of the shift members were starting to grow increasingly tired. Marco started to yawn, and because yawns are contagious, others followed suit. Cap looked around at the rest of the A-shift and sighed.

“I guess we're all going to bed, whether this movie is finished or not,” he said, getting up to turn the lights back on. Johnny got up himself to turn off the television at the same time, and the rest of the guys started to stretch and move around a little bit. “Dump out whatever's left for popcorn and let's get to the dorm.”

Those who were still sitting and stretching slowly got up themselves and made their way to the trash, shaking their bowls so that whatever was still in them – whether it was popcorn or salt – was fully out. After putting each dish in the sink, the A-shift made their way to the dorm as a group. Cap turned out the light in the day room and walked behind them. Another light came on, and everyone started to strip down to their tees and boxers.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

As the members of the shift had turned off the light and started to drift off to sleep, dreams had started to pop into their heads. There were no nightmares in the group of six, which was a miracle considering six brains had consistent nightmares based on runs they had gone out on during previous shifts. It also came with no tossing and no turning; a rare feat for any shift in Station 51.

But as they were sleeping, nobody knew just what was happening out in the bay.

There were a few people who had snuck into the station through Cap's office, finding a way to unlock the door from the outside. “Don't make too much noise,” someone had said with a voice muffled behind a bandanna. “You're going to wake the fuckers, and we don't need that happening. Just do what you have to do to get this fucking thing out of here, and we can pawn it off for some money or something.”

The rest of the trespassers, all wearing bandannas around different parts of their bodies, carefully inspected the huge Ward LaFrance engine parked along the far wall, across from Cap's office. It was shiny, red, and open for the taking. A female member tiptoed her way over to the dorm's door to see some of the men sleeping sound in their beds. Turning around to see her male companions, she tiptoed back to tell them the good news. “None of them are going to notice what we're doing. Operation 'Kidnap the Engine' is in motion. Let's do it.”

The group nodded. One went over to the control for the big metal door, the one door that would make a lot of noise upon command. It was the one thing that, according to the members, would have screwed over everyone involved. It would take a lot of determination to prevent one of those A-shift members from coming out to call the police. Vince would come in an instant, and God knows that they didn't need to get busted before the plan was successful.

“I hope this works,” the man at the door controls said, crossing his fingers. “Don't mess this whole thing up.” After fumbling with the controls (since he didn't know how to operate them at first), a white index finger pressed the button to raise the door of the bay. It started to creak a little bit, making its usual noises as it went higher and higher.

The only female quietly snuck back over to the door of the dorm room and smiled upon looking through the window. Mike had flipped over from side to side, but there was no sign of significant movement from anyone on the shift. When she gave the “a-okay” motion, the plan was set into place.

Everyone climbed up into the huge engine. Pressing the door button again – this time, to close it – he ran towards one of the back seats and crossed his fingers. The motor started to run, and before it was too late, the engine slowly crept out of the bay. The only lights on were those that would allow the driver to see where he was going. There was no sign of lights and sirens. The plan to remove Engine 51 from the station had been completed. Part two would come up at a later time.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

There were no calls for the rest of the night. The only time that the station's call tones came out had been for the test. “LA, Station 51. KMG-365,” said Cap, as he sat up in his bed to clean the cobwebs out of his eyes. Legs and feet were slowly covered by bunker pants. The sun was shining through the windows, and there were no words between anyone on the shift. That was, until..

“Oh, no! NO!”

Mike was kneeling where the engine was supposed to be in the bay, with his head in his hands and on the verge of tears. His engine, his baby, was missing. “Where's my engine?” He was visibly distraught, and rightfully so. Engine 51 was a huge motor vehicle. If it wasn't where it should be, parked next to the squad, where could it have gone?

Cap rushed over to the bay's communications device with LA, while Chet and Marco were standing on both sides of Mike, trying to console him. “LA, this is Station 51. I don't want to make this sound stupid, but we need to be stood down for a little bit while we get a replacement engine at our station. You see... It's not here.” Growing increasingly nervous, Cap looked through the windows of the squad to see Mike being picked up off of his knees by his linemen. His engineer didn't know what to do at the moment, other than stand around with a blank, 'holy shit' expression on his face.

Meanwhile, the conversation between LA and Cap continued, with Cap finally getting the word that the station would be stood down (with the exception of the squad) until further notice. There would have to be an investigation, first and foremost, starting with a Chief coming to talk to the firemen to figure out how they can start finding the engine. They realized that the police would have to be involved, but besides that? They didn't know what else would have to happen in order for a big Ward LaFrance to be spotted.

Los Angeles was a big county, so that truck could have been ditched on the side of a dirt canyon road for all someone knew. But since nobody was sure who had come into the station to take it, there was going to be a major argument regarding its locations. Some people were pretty certain that the thing was still on the run somewhere, in one of the counties in close proximity. By now, nobody was exactly sure.


	2. Chapter 2

Sitting around the table in the day room, it seemed that everyone on shift had been experiencing some form of unease. Six minds couldn't put together just how an engine like theirs could have grown legs and walked off without notice. It was right there when they all went to bed; they were sure of it. How in the world could something so valuable be around one second but gone the next?

“When we all saw Mike in the empty spot, we didn't see any trace of liquid on the floor of the bay,” Marco said, finding that his voice was getting louder. “I don't care what happened to it – if it was someone or a group of, those _pendejos de mierda_ are going to get it.” He slammed a fist onto the table, shaking the cups of coffee that were all around the table, in front of everyone's sulking faces.

Cap shook his head. “Marco, you don't know if it was someone who was at fault,” he attempted to protest. “But you have a point. I don't think it was magically taken from us by just anyone. It wouldn't make any sense at all. You'd have to think that it was a well thought out plan. Now, if you'd excuse me...” It was then that Cap got up out of his seat to go to his office. Filing a report regarding the engine had to be done.

The rest of the A-shift sat in the day room in silence. They all looked around at each other; each one just as clueless as the next. Then when it seemed as though it couldn't have gotten any worse, Cap started to scream at the top of his lungs. It wasn't pretty.

“What the hell happened here?!”

Johnny led the charge into Cap's office, stopping dead in his tracks when he noticed that something wasn't right. Again. Everyone saw Cap, distraught in front of the glass door to his office. It had been broken into. “I... I locked it right before the car accident run,” he complained, looking at the door carefully and close up. “I suppose that those who might be at fault had picked at this thing before coming in. There's no other way to get in here without making a ruckus.”

It wasn't long until a Chief and Vince pulled into the parking lot of the station, coming in through the back bay door. The Chief looked around the bay, seeing the huge, empty space next to 51's squad. He knew right away that something was wrong, but he just wanted to make sure that everyone was okay before sitting down with them to determine what they could do.

Vince made his way to Hank's office and smiled. “This is not the way I wanted to see you today,” he said, giving everyone outside of the door frame a glare before stepping into the office. “But your Chief called me and thought it was a good idea to start some sort of investigation. Hank... Tell me how much you know about this missing engine issue. The rest of you – go to the day room and talk it out with the Chief.”

As the rest of 51's current shift shuffled over to the next room, Hank spoke up. “Vince, this might be a clue as to how the engine was stolen. I lock this door every time we get a run. I didn't unlock it for the rest of the night.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

On the other side of Los Angeles County, four mysterious people in black bandannas were having the joyride of a lifetime. Part two of Operation 'Kidnap the Engine' was going swimmingly, as far as they knew. The two men in the cab of 51's Ward LaFrance had been laughing to each other, knowing that the farther they went with their stolen method of transportation, the better things would get for them.

“I wish I could have stayed at the station a little bit longer, just to see their panicked faces when they found out that what they love so much was taken from them without notice,” the passenger said, smirking demonically. “Anthony, I think we're taking this baby outside of the county.”

The driver, known as Anthony, joined his partner in crime by laughing out loud. He glanced down at the gauges for a second or two before moving his attention back up to the road ahead of him. It made sense that he'd be the one who'd drive the engine around the county like a madman on a police chase. He had been a skilled driver when it came to stolen vehicles, especially when participating in crimes with the other three people in the party. Every time a car came up on the news as missing, Anthony would hide it from public view, mainly in the woods or in some desolate area of the canyons, then joined his then-former partners by hopping into a van that would meet up with them at the location of choice.

This plan, however, was different. Anthony was teamed up with different people, with a different mission in mind. Each member of the crew involved in stealing the engine had placed a helmet on top of their heads so that it didn't look as suspicious as it already did. At least making it look like they were firemen for LA County made some sort of sense. Just having bandannas on their person was a dead giveaway already. Taking it to the next level, putting on helmets that might not have fit, was better. At least it was somewhat credible.

Anthony checked the gauges again. The gas gauge was slowly running down to E, which was a good sign. The longer it took for it to reach empty, the better. There was no glance to his right as he took a sharp right hand turn down a side street. “I wonder what happens when the boss sees us,” he mentioned with a hidden look of confusion on his face. “He's either going to think we're nuts, or he's going to want us to drown this son of a bitch in the Pacific Ocean. Either way, he's going to be pleased that this was a successful snatch.”

The man in the passenger seat nodded. “Mister Porter will be very pleased,” the mysterious man commented, knowing that deep down, he wanted his driver to hide the engine in the woods, just like every other car he had stolen before.

“We're here. Get this fucking thing in the building. Mister Porter will want to see us get out of it personally.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Mister Porter, as people called him, was waiting impatiently in the warehouse that he had called his kingdom. He was surrounded by extremely sexy ladies; some of which were around him just for the fun of it. He had been waiting for something to come into his kingdom for quite some time – the announcement was made a few days ago to those who he had personally hand-picked, and he was wondering if they would ever return with what was sure to be a surprise.

As he heard an unfamiliar noise coming from the automobile entrance, he knew that something was up. Porter didn't know what he was going to come face-to-face with, however, until another hitman came walking towards him. “Sir,” the hitman said with a louder tone of voice. “They're back. They've done it. Gone over the deep end, I think.”

Porter turned his head to the left, and when he noticed just what was pulling in, his eyes widened. “I don't believe it. THIS is what they brought back? It's the most wonderful time of the year.”

In front of his blue eyes was a red Ward LaFrance fire truck, with decals that said that it was from Station 51 in Los Angeles County. It wasn't at all what he had thought of in all of his years as a hard-nosed criminal. But deep down, it was fitting the description of something that he wanted his finely-picked people to steal – something he wouldn't dream of stealing before, or ever again.

As Anthony and the passengers climbed out of the back jump seats, the leader walked around the front of the engine. He was still grinning widely. “Mister Porter, Sir... I hope this is what you had in mind. It was a hard task to get it, with a whole shift sleeping in their beds. Jasmine had double checked to see if they were sound asleep, even when the loudest of noises had occurred.”

Jasmine smiled. She had given the okay multiple times, including when the front bay door was being raised. She was sure that because they had gotten the truck to Porter, they would get a handsome reward in return.

“Jackson, I think this is a wonderful surprise,” Porter said in a monotone voice. He sounded like he didn't care about the theft, but in his mind, he wanted to hug the four junior criminals at once. “I didn't think you would be able to do it, especially with firemen still in the station. Congratulations.”

The four truck stealers had lined up in front of their leader. None of them knew just what Porter wanted them to do next. They stood side-by-side, awaiting their directions regarding the engine.

“Now then,” Porter said, getting up out of his seat and walking towards his successful team of thieves. “Regarding this engine – I want you to do me a huge favor. I want you to leave it here. Get in a van and high-tail it out of here. I'll be riding out ahead of you, and be sure to follow me to our next location. For now, though...” He pointed to the stolen engine as he finished his sentence. “I think I know what we're going to do with it, but I'm going to weigh every option in the book before I give you definitive orders.”

With a smirk on his face, he glanced back at 51's engine. _Making me happy; one theft at a time._


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a lot of fluff in the middle of the chapter, regarding our four main thieves. Not enough Porter, either. I know. It's moving things along, though. I'm thinking about making a whole chapter based on 51, then Porter next.

The usually quiet shift change at Station 51 wasn't as quiet as people wanted it to be. As refreshed members of the fire department walked into the bay, they were taken back at what they were seeing in front of them – or what they weren't seeing. A replacement engine hadn't been dropped off yet, which was surprising, given the fact that Captain Stanley had reported it missing as soon as they woke up for the day. And they were approaching two hours since Vince and a department Chief came in to talk to them. By now, each member of the horrified A-shift had changed into their street clothes; some talking to their replacements.

Everyone's mood was still a bit solemn and sour, but the Chief decided that a full station couldn't be taken out of commission for more than it was necessary. The Squad was back in service not too long after the next shift came in. It didn't take long for them to get toned out, though. Johnny and Roy were in the middle of a conversation with their fellow paramedics when the Squad got a run for an elderly lady in cardiac arrest; the men relieving them running out of the locker room the second that the klaxon went off. Two pairs of shoulders shrugged, and as the sound of sirens pulled out of the bay, the sound of a voice came across through the bay.

“If you're still here, A-shift, can you come in here,” Cap asked, tapping his foot in the spot where the Squad was just sitting. Since nobody had left to think about what they were going to do, five bodies migrated towards their Captain. It was only a matter of time until someone was going to speak up with a suggestion on what they could possibly do; one person to come up with some idea that would put them all in jeopardy.

Once the last man stopped in his tracks, the powwow began. “Look, I know we're all depressed about what happened over the course of the night,” Hank began, looking at each individual and pausing for a few seconds before moving to the next. “If anyone's got any ideas about how to start going about this, I'd like to hear what you've got in mind.” He looked around, watching others looking around as well. If someone's not going to speak up, I don't know what kind of family we are.

Chet raised his hand slowly, like a student in an elementary school class who was nervous about answering the question in front of him. “Well, going back home isn't going to solve anything. I might put a hole in the floor of my place pacing back and forth,” he commented, getting a few soft chuckles from his fellow shift members. “We could split up and look around the canyons to start. At least get some sort of search party out there, even if it has to be us.”

What Chet said made Johnny amused. “And you really think this is going to work?” It didn't take much for the paramedic to bicker with the lineman, and it didn't take long after that for an argument to begin. “What makes you think that we can just find the thing there? This is a big county. That thing could be out of here by now!”

“Gage, I don't want to start something with you...”

It was clear that Chet didn't want to start trouble, since it was only one man with his idea. Johnny nodded. “Fair enough. But if that doesn't work, how would you like to proceed? Call a psychic somewhere and see what they can do for us?”

The two men started to scream at each other, with their voices echoing throughout the bay. Cap had enough of it. “Gage! Kelly! Quit it while you're ahead,” he yelled himself, shutting the fight down. “We'll start out with that idea Chet had in mind. If someone left the engine somewhere, it wouldn't be sitting in any old driveway somewhere. It's going to be somewhere desolate, if anywhere. We've got a couple of days until the next shift. Go home, pack up a few camping materials, and we'll all meet up in two hours. Done?”

There wasn't a resounding round of approval, but there were some nods that confirmed that they would get to hunting for the Ward LaFrance before lunch. Cap sent his juniors off to their cars with their plan in place. If anything, he hoped that what they were going to do would shed some light into what was going on.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A small breakfast and lunch cafe in San Bernadino County had seen its share of people and things throughout the course of its existence. When four people walked in, presumably to eat breakfast, the owners didn't think anything about what they were wearing – dark street clothes, predominantly black. They had been wearing matching black bandannas, which didn't seem suspicious to the random John Doe walking down the sidewalk. But what they were doing in there was strictly business, with a little food on the side.

What they were talking about seemed a little... Vague.

“Mister Porter has this perfect idea about what he's going to do with our little surprise,” Jackson said as soon as the menus were taken from them upon ordering. “Whatever it is, I can't wait to find out what we get to do next. This isn't going to get easier from here. You guys realize that there are going to be people on our asses. We just have to keep it all quiet, and nobody will know that we're in on it.”

The others nodded. “But what if they find it before we finish up what he wants us to do,” the quiet Isaiah said, opening his mouth for what seemed like the first time since the engine was swiped from underneath sleeping noses. “I don't know if that's going to be what he wants, you know?”

It sounded pretty obvious, but it wasn't far from the truth. Porter was thinking about getting rid of that engine as much as possible, and he didn't care about who was in his way. If he was going to do what needed to do with the cops staring him straight in the face, then so be it. But if he was going to go down, he'd go down swinging. Or he'd have others do the job for him, just like he had arranged for the theft to occur.

As soon as the food arrived, there wasn't much talking. Everyone's attention was diverted from talking about what Porter wanted to do with the vehicle to the food that was in front of them. Once in a while, there would be some sort of talk, but it wouldn't be about what they were a part of. They hadn't gotten to know each other very well. In fact, it was a time for them to get to find out just how they became a part of what they were involved in.

What they learned about each other was both astonishing and mildly depressing. From deaths in the family to failed attempts to succeed in life, each one sitting around the table thought that they wouldn't be able to get anywhere as a person. They had to rely on street life in order to get through the desolate days and the even worse nights. Crossing the path of someone who was selling drugs? Living on the streets with a box as your home? Those were some of the things that at least one of the criminals had to endure. Others didn't have that life, but they were certain that they would have to live it.

It was a somber reminder of where they had come from, and why Porter had picked them to do the job – because he knew that it was something that they would all succeed in and get right. From Jasmine's peeking through the window to see if the A-shift was going to wake up, to Jackson's fearless attitude and courage to get the engine to begin with, the four people knew that they were pleasing themselves for the first time in a long time.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“We're selling the parts on the black market,” Porter said to his cronies, sitting around a table in the abandoned warehouse. The engine had been sitting silently where Anthony had parked it, and the head of the operation had been peeking at it every chance he had. The rest of the men who were still hanging around had been collecting thoughts of their own, debating about what the ultimate plan would be regarding it. There was talk about sending it straight into the ocean. One person even said that they should give it its just desserts and burn it to its 'death'.

But in the end, Mister Porter was the one who had the sole task in determining what would happen to the red machine. And everyone who associated themselves with him knew that what he said would happen.

“Those parts are going to be great, as long as we don't sell anything that would be blatantly obvious to the naked eye,” Porter continued, getting up out of his seat. He started to make his way to the big object that had been planted in the building. “No markings. I don't want those doors to go to sale. People would know and get on the horn with the cops. I want the hidden parts. The less noticeable ones. There will be no arguments – we'll tear this damn thing down.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been quite some time since I worked on this. I don't know what got me away from it. But this is back up and in operation. This chapter is more Mike/Hank than a general 51 thing, which I thought was going to happen until my muse worked.

Two hours felt like eternity. Each member of the A-shift packed up whatever necessities they needed for what could have been hours or even days, and made their way to the place that they all thought was the obvious place for a stolen engine to go: The canyon. Made sense to start there, right? Considering that it would be impossible to hide a truck in the middle of a city, leaving it parked in the middle of dirt was the next viable option.

Station 51 arrived slowly; one crew member at a time. Hank was first to arrive, with each person joining him not too long after the next. All was going according to plan, and as Johnny pulled into line, everyone picked up their belongings and huddled together under the hot California sun.

“Okay, so here’s the plan,” said the strategically-balanced Captain. “We’ll separate into three pairs. I figure that we’d pair up based on familiarity. Stoker and I will team up. Chet and Marco, and Johnny and Roy – you’re the other two pairs. I didn’t want to mix things up, because I know some of you wouldn’t fare well if they were paired together...”

Chet looked at Gage. Gage looked back and stuck his tongue out in retaliation. Everyone else either shook their head or stifled laughter. Hank wasn’t amused. He looked at the two men sternly, knowing that both of them would get the idea that this wasn’t the time to play games.

“Sorry, Cap,” Johnny muttered, after he put his tongue back in his mouth. Chet nodded in agreement.

Marco spoke next. “Okay, so now that we’re paired up, how do we know where we’ll all be going? So many different paths. It could take hours if we don’t have a clue on how to navigate around here.”

It was a good idea. Even better, it was a great one. The canyons were a big part of the county of Los Angeles. Many times, Station 51 had to go up there for calls. Most of them were serious situations. If it was going to take a miracle to get the engine back, knowing where to go in the maze of dust was going to be a key factor.

Everyone looked around, trying to figure out what their next plan of action would be.

“I’ve got it!” Roy turned around from staring at his car and motioned a thumb in its direction. “Why don’t we drive around here? Better on wheel than on foot. We’d cover more ground that way.”

With a smile on his face and a few nods of his head, Hank was in agreement. “You read my mind, DeSoto,” he said, pushing past his Paramedics and opening the door to his car. “Mike, come on. You guys, follow suit. Just take a path and go down it.”

Scrambling towards three vehicles, the guys sped off down three different routes with the same mission. Don’t come out until you find your baby.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Route number one, the one pointed in the opposite direction as the parked cars left behind, was occupied by Mike and Captain Stanley. For once, the shoe was on the other foot – Hank was the one driving, while Stoker rode shotgun. Being the one behind the wheel had its disadvantages, though. Every other time, 51’s Captain had full attention of the surroundings, including finding the wreck if it seemed to be invisible.

Stoker had an incredibly wide smile on his face on this hot day, however. He had a great view of the ditches on the passenger’s side, just in case his prized possession was driven off the cliff. Mike wanted that thing back bad, and his eyes were focused off to his right at all times. And seeing as though his Captain was finally using his right foot instead of his mouth...

_Don’t think about that_ , Mike mouthed to himself as he looked out the mirror on the outside of the door. He didn’t want to start an argument at a time like this. Not now, not ever.

For a brief second, Hank looked over to his quiet assistant. “Mike, I know you’re the one who wants this engine back worse than the rest of us combined. I’m sorry if I seemed a little uneasy so far today.” Cap was extremely upset at a lot of things during the day so far, and it made sense to apologize about his actions. He was hoping that his engineer would be sympathetic in return.

Stoker quickly looked at his Captain, then looked back out to the scenery. “I don’t mind it all,” he replied back. “I know you didn’t mean anything. It’s just... I don’t know. Too much going on. You saw how I was when I was just there in the bay. If I could have, I would have cried. Engineers don’t show emotion when it comes to things like this.”

Trading in their Crown for the Ward a year or two ago was a sad moment in Mike’s life. Moving on from one engine to another was like putting your first kid up for adoption and having your woman give birth to another. It was a happy moment, but you had to lose something important before that. Although the whole kid analogy almost never worked that way, but what an analogy it was.

But the Ward was more than just a child. It was everything and it meant everything to him. Getting to test drive it with the rest of the A-shift on the day it had arrived at the station was a joy. The memory of seeing Gage and DeSoto squeezing into the back seats with Marco and Chet... That kind of thing would last a lifetime. It felt like a Kodak moment. _Nothing could be better than that original test drive. Nothing._

Stoker felt a shiver go down his spine. He felt joy in flashing back to that point in time. He also started to choke up a bit. “I’m sorry, Cap,” he said, sniffling a bit.

Hank took a hand off of the wheel and put it on Mike’s thigh. He wanted to assure his younger crewmate that things would be okay. It would all be over soon. Mike just wanted to get the Ward back, so that everything would be back to normal, and...

“Mike, I think I see something!”

Cap slammed on the brakes; the car screeched to a sudden stop. “Check that out, on the left side there,” Hank said, quickly opening his door and moving to the front of the car. Mike stopped reminiscing, and joined his elder statesman. “That’s our shade of red, but I can’t tell if that’s it or not,” continued 51’s leader.”

The two men walked up to the edge of the hill to take a better look at what they thought was the Ward. They could tell that whatever was stopped in the distance was fire truck red, which obviously matched what they were looking for. But was it their fire engine decked out in that red paint job?

“Is there a path I can take to see it closer,” was the question coming from Mike, as he pointed towards the mysterious-looking object. “You know I’d love to see it for myself...” There was zero hesitation. If he wanted to see what Cap saw, he was going to see it, too. Just not from the same distance, though.

Hank pointed to a steep dirt area on his left. “Right there. I don’t want you going too far. If you get hurt, there’s no chance we can call someone – we don’t have a phone in our possession.”

Stoker nodded and immediately ran down the hill. Stanley’s eyes widened as he saw his engineer rush down the dirt-covered area and behind a bunch of bushes. Cap was hoping it wasn’t poison ivy, which would be the last thing anyone would need with a missing engine – that may or may not have been found. For all they knew, it wasn’t it.

“You see anything, Mike?”

“I see red. And a little white. But I can’t see any lettering!”

“Move in closer. I can barely see from up here.”

Mike pushed through the bushes and leaned up against a tree. He smiled, and began reading off what he could see. “County. Of. Los. Angeles...” Four words that would make anybody happy. But who?

Stanley clasped his hands together, like he was going to pray to the Gods. Suddenly, he could hear a voice coming from down below.

“Oh, no! No! NO!”

“Son of a bitch,” Cap muttered, knowing that the loudest ‘no’ from Mike didn’t sound so good. He looked down and yelled at his teammate. “Stoker, come up here. False alarm?”

Mike began to march back towards the hill, looking extremely frustrated. “Yes,” he said, now pouting and stomping like a little child. “It said ‘County of Los Angeles’. But it wasn’t our engine. It’s not even what I think is the one that the Chief called in for. I’m sorry.”


End file.
